Technique 13: Printing to a Desktop Printer
Solving resolution issues
Selecting the right printer
Setting printing options
Have printer, will print, right? Well, maybe. When everything is working correctly, printing is easy and you get the results that you want. When something is out of whack — for instance, your image resolution is low so you end up with pixilated output or the color you see on the monitor does not match the printed page — things can get a little out of hand.
This technique covers the easy aspects of printing and the not-so-easy aspects, like the gnarly glitches that lead to headaches and hair pulling. First, you find out how image resolution relates to the printed page. Next, you discover how to set a default printer and set printer-specific options. Then, you take a look at paper options and other printing options available to you in Photoshop. The end of this technique covers the three commands that you can use to print your images. By the way, if you’re preparing artwork for a commercial printer, turn to Technique 14, where you can find much of the information that you need to make your offset printing project a success.